Lost in the polls: Excluded from the voters’ list? What to do when your name vanishes?

On Monday (13 May), 96 seats in nine states and one Union Territory (UT) votedin India's fourth round of the Lok Sabha elections. According to reports, some electors in Maharashtra'sPune, including the old and children, have claimed that they were unable to exercise their right to vote because their names were not on the voters' list.

Air Chief Marshal Pradeep Vasant Naik, Air Force chief Air Chief, claimed that the name of his wife Madhubalawas removed from the voters' list. He informed PTI that he, his wife, and their son went to polling booth 26 on Sampling School Baner Road in Pune to cast their votes. He told PTI, “My 72-year-old wife’s name was found deleted from the voters’ list. When we brought this to the attention of the official there, he said that there was nothing he could do to help.”

“We had the necessary slips given by the local corporator with us when we reached the polling centre. But it was of no use as my wife’s name was not there on the list,” he said. Other Pune voters have also voiced concerns along these lines. Reports of names being omitted from the electoral list have surfaced before, though.

However, why is this taking place? What causes the name of a voter to disappear from the electoral list? Here arethe reasons behind name missingand what you should do if your name is missing.

Why isn't your name on the voters' list?

According to the Indian Express report, between 23 January and 15 April this year, 2.39 lakh names were added and 17,749 voters were removed from the electoral records by Pune election officials.

This followed an exercise in October by the district election administration torationalise voting stations. According to Indian Express, election officers stated that this was necessary due to the maximum number of votes that one electronic voting machine (EVM) can register. According to the Election Commission of India (ECI), a single EVM can hold up to 2,000 votes but is often certified to retain 1,500 votes.

“Names have not been deleted. Instead, they might have been shifted from one booth to another. In case the voter is not able to find their names in the list – it would be advisable to check in the nearby booths. Deletion of names is an extreme exercise and is rarely done so,” an officer told Indian Express.

Conditions for deleting names from voters' list

The four conditions for deleting a name are death, a specific individual being missing, duplication, and transfers. If a voter's name appears twice or is not located during a door-to-door survey, the names are deleted. Before deleting names, a list of recommendations and complaints is saved for future reference. The purpose of this effort is to guarantee that every qualified voter may exercise their right and tosanitisethe list.

What can you do if your name is deleted from the voters' list?

You cannot vote in this year's Lok Sabha Elections if your name has been deleted but you can fill Form 8 and immediately register for the Vidhan Sabha elections to be held later this year.